A changing story
Constance, 91黑料不打烊’s STEM Captain, knows her story will change over time, and that’s OK.
I don’t know about you, but staring down at a blank page titled hopes/dreams on the Day of Hope Seminar isn’t the finest moment for an emotional, slightly hysterical teenage girl bound for university in under a year's time.
In a flurry of excitement, 21st Century Wenonians are faced head on with the ‘horrors’ of social media, a plethora of maths homework and most recently an international pandemic. Now more than ever, it is becoming increasingly more difficult to expand on your hopes and dreams - your story.
So, let’s put this into perspective. In September 2018 I was diagnosed with a temporary PUJ obstruction in my left kidney. It was at this moment, like many great stories, the plot twist emerged, and if you are studying the Year 12 Module A Textual Conversations course the volta- the moment of realisation.
Now don’t get me wrong, I am far from writing as well as John Donne and Margaret Edson, nor is this speech a sonnet, but if there's one message a roomful of teenage Wenonians can take away through my surgery experience, is that life really is too short to focus on other peoples’ stories rather than developing your own.
I don’t need to tell you there are going to be so many plot twists, rising action moments, introductions and resolutions in each new chapter. But soon enough, you will have to realise there is no one better to develop, write and own your story than yourself. The increasing tension between Russia, Ukraine and the international community puts into perspective how through our stories we need to be honest within ourselves and the realities of life: the good, the bad and the ugly.
So, your story is going to be messy. And if you’re anything like me your storybook will be annotated excessively, scribbled out, pages torn, and corners folded. And it’s normal for your story to showcase moments of regret. I regret not practising my clarinet nearly as much as I should, I regret eating so many berries that one time that I got berry poisoning (yes that is a real, serious thing) and in hindsight maybe I shouldn't have worn a giant Nemo costume to my group’s Halloween party and let them take photos of me in it.
But herein lies my poetic volta- my moment of realisation. These small, seemingly embarrassing memories culminate into a story. One in which an independent Renaissance woman has a passion for history, law, science and maths. I often find myself exclaiming to those around me that my life is so interesting that someone should write a biography on me!
But as much I know how each and every one of you would love to read a biography on a girl looking to invest in roller skates and yearning for a summer mansion in the South of France in order to be an ethical puppy breeder, my final story is not going to end for a long time, and neither will yours.
Constance (Year 12)
STEM Captain 2021/2022